Information management system, carbon dioxide collection station, and information management device

ABSTRACT

An information management system includes: a plurality of CO2 recovery devices configured to recover CO2; a CO2 collection station configured to collect CO2 recovered by the plurality of CO2 recovery devices; a CO2 using facility configured to use CO2 collected at the CO2 collection station; and an information management device including a communication unit configured to transmit linked information in which intended use information indicating intended use of CO2 in the CO2 using facility and an amount of use for the intended use is linked with identification information of a user of each of the plurality of CO2 recovery devices to an information communication terminal used by the user.

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 17/038,142 filed on Sep. 30, 2020, which claims the benefit ofJapanese Priority Patent Application No. 2019-202558 filed in Japan onNov. 7, 2019, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein byreference.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates to an information management system, aCO₂ using facility, a CO₂ collection station, an information managementdevice, a vehicle, a building, and an information communicationterminal.

There has been known a CO₂ recovery system that reduces the amount ofCO₂ emitted from vehicles by using a CO₂ recovery device that capturesand stores carbon dioxide (CO₂) emitted from vehicles (JP 2014-509360A).

SUMMARY

In the CO₂ recovery system described in JP 2014-509360 A, it is assumedthat CO₂ recovered from a vehicle having a CO₂ recovery device iscollected at another place such as a CO₂ collection station, and thecollected CO₂ is used for conversion into fuel. However, there has notbeen disclosed information management technology for informing a userwho uses the CO₂ recovery device of information such as the intended useand amount of use of CO₂ collected from the CO₂ recovery device.

There is a need for an information management system that is capable ofinforming a user who uses a CO₂ recovery device of information such asthe intended use and amount of use of CO₂ recovered from the CO₂recovery device, and a CO₂ using facility, a CO₂ collection station, aninformation management device, a vehicle, a building, and an informationcommunication terminal that are suitable for constructing theinformation management system.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided aninformation management system including: a plurality of CO₂ recoverydevices configured to recover CO₂; a CO₂ collection station configuredto collect CO₂ recovered by the plurality of CO₂ recovery devices; a CO₂using facility configured to use CO₂ collected at the CO₂ collectionstation; and an information management device including a communicationunit configured to transmit linked information in which intended useinformation indicating intended use of CO₂ in the CO₂ using facility andan amount of use for the intended use is linked with identificationinformation of a user of each of the plurality of CO₂ recovery devicesto an information communication terminal used by the user.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an information management systemaccording to a first embodiment;

FIGS. 2A to 2D are explanatory diagrams of a database B of a CO₂collection station according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of information processing in aprocessing plant according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a database F of an informationmanagement center according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of an information communicationterminal 12 according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 6A is a control flowchart performed by a vehicle according to thefirst embodiment;

FIG. 6B is a control flowchart performed by the CO₂ collection stationaccording to the first embodiment;

FIGS. 7A and 7B are control flowcharts performed by the CO₂ collectionstation and a transportation vehicle according to the first embodiment,respectively;

FIGS. 8A and 8B are control flowcharts performed by the transportationvehicle and the processing plant according to the first embodiment,respectively;

FIG. 9 is a control flowchart of information processing performed by theprocessing plant according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 10A is a control flowchart performed by the processing plantaccording to the first embodiment;

FIG. 10B is a control flowchart performed by the information managementcenter according to the first embodiment;

FIGS. 11A and 11B are control flowcharts performed by the vehicle andthe information management center according to the first embodiment,respectively; and

FIG. 12 is a control flowchart performed by the informationcommunication terminal according to the first embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, an embodiment will be described with reference to thedrawings.

Information Management System

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an information management systemaccording to a first embodiment. An information management system 1000includes three vehicles 1A, 1B, and 1C as an example of a plurality ofvehicles, two CO₂ collection stations 2A and 2B as an example of aplurality of CO₂ collection stations, a transportation vehicle 3, aprocessing plant 4, an information management center 5, and acommunication network 6. In the first embodiment, a description will begiven assuming that among the vehicles 1A, 1B, and 1C, the vehicle 1A isappropriately used as a representative, among the CO₂ collectionstations 2A and 2B, the CO₂ collection station 2A is appropriately usedas a representative, and the processing plant 4 is used as an example ofa CO₂ using facility. Other vehicles 1B and 1C may have the sameconfiguration as the vehicle 1A. The CO₂ collection station 2B may havethe same configuration as the CO₂ collection station 2A.

Vehicle

The vehicle 1A includes a CO₂ recovery device 10, a controller 11, andan information communication terminal 12. The CO₂ recovery device 10,the controller 11, and the information communication terminal 12 arecommunicably connected to each other using an in-vehicle network such asCAN (controller area network).

The CO₂ recovery device 10 includes a CO₂ recovery unit 100, a CO₂recovery control unit 101, and a CO₂ tank 102. The CO₂ recovery unit 100recovers exhaust gas emitted from the vehicle 1A or CO₂ gas contained inthe atmosphere by, for example, the method described in JP 2014-509360A, that is, the method such as chemical adsorption or physicaladsorption. The CO₂ recovery unit 100 discharges the recovered CO₂ tothe CO₂ collection station. The CO₂ tank 102 stores the CO₂ recovered bythe CO₂ recovery unit 100. The CO₂ recovery control unit 101 controlsthe start and end of CO₂ recovery of the CO₂ recovery unit 100 accordingto the storable amount of the CO₂ tank 102 and the like. The CO₂recovery control unit 101 includes a computation processing unit such asa CPU (central processor) and an FPGA (field-programmable gate array),and a storage unit that includes a ROM (read only memory) storing aprogram executed by the computation processing unit and various data anda RAM (random access memory) as a work space for computation processing.The CO₂ recovery control unit 101 executes the control described aboveby the computation processing unit executing the program stored in thestorage unit. The CO₂ recovery unit 100 also includes a connectionsensor that detects whether the CO₂ recovery unit 100 is connected tothe CO₂ collection station 2A.

The CO₂ tank 102 is a tank that compresses and stores CO₂ recovered bythe CO₂ recovery unit 100. The CO₂ tank 102 includes a storage amountsensor that detects a storage amount.

The controller 11 includes a control unit 110 and a storage unit 111.

The control unit 110 includes a computation processing unit such as aCPU, and executes a program stored in the storage unit 111, thus storinginformation received by a communication unit 120 in the storage unit 111or transmitting the information in the storage unit 111 from thecommunication unit 120 included in the information communicationterminal 12.

The storage unit 111 includes a main storage unit such as a ROM or aRAM, and stores a program executed by the control unit 110 and variousdata, and provides a work space for computation processing. Further, thestorage unit 111 stores identification information of the user of theCO₂ recovery device 10, the amount of CO₂ recovered by the CO₂ recoverydevice 10, and information about the intended use of the recovered CO₂in a database A1110. The user of the CO₂ recovery device 10 is, forexample, the owner of the vehicle 1A including the CO₂ recovery device10. The intended use information will be described in detail later. Thestorage unit 111 may include a large-capacity auxiliary storage deviceusing a magnetic medium such as an HDD (hard disc drive), an opticalmedium such as a DVD (digital versatile disc), or a semiconductor memorysuch as an SSD (solid state drive).

The information communication terminal 12 includes the communicationunit 120, an output unit 121, an input unit 122, and a terminal controlunit 123.

The communication unit 120 transmits and receives information to andfrom the information management center 5 via the communication network 6including a wireless communication network. The communication unit 120transmits and receives information to and from the CO₂ collectionstation 2 through near-field communication such as WI-FI (registeredtrademark) or Bluetooth (registered trademark). The communication unit120 is implemented by, for example, a DCM (data communication module).

The output unit 121 displays or speaks the information about theintended use and amount of use of CO₂ received from the informationmanagement center 5 by the communication unit 120, and includes, forexample, a liquid crystal display or a speaker. The input unit 122allows a user to input an operation, and includes, for example, a touchpanel and a microphone. The information about the intended use andamount of use of CO₂ will be described in detail later.

The terminal control unit 123 includes a computation processing unit anda storage unit that stores a program a program executed by thecomputation processing unit and various data and also provides a workspace for computation processing. As the computation processing unitexecutes the program stored in the storage unit, the information storedin the storage unit 111 is output to the output unit 121, and the inputinformation input from the input unit 122 is output to the control unit110.

The information communication terminal 12 may be any terminal that maybe used by a user and whose output may be checked, and may be achievedby an in-vehicle navigation system and a mobile informationcommunication terminal such as a smartphone or a tablet. Thecommunication unit 120 may be implemented by a communication modulemounted on the vehicle 1A, for example, a DCM (data communicationmodule).

CO₂ Collection Station

The CO₂ collection stations 2A and 2B are stations for collecting CO₂recovered by the CO₂ recovery device 10 in any of the vehicles 1A, 1B,and 1C. The CO₂ collection station 2A includes a CO₂ collection device20 and a controller 21 that are communicably connected to each other.

The CO₂ collection device 20 includes a CO₂ collection unit 200, a CO₂collection control unit 201, and a CO₂ tank 202.

The CO₂ collection unit 200 is connected to the CO₂ recovery device 10of the vehicle 1A to collect CO₂ stored in the CO₂ tank 102 of thevehicle 1A. The CO₂ collection unit 200 is also connected to a CO₂collection device 30 of the transportation vehicle 3 to discharge CO₂stored in the CO₂ tank 202 into the transportation vehicle 3. Moreover,the CO₂ collection unit 200 includes a connection sensor that detectswhich of the CO₂ collection station 2 and the transportation vehicle 3is connected to the CO₂ collection unit 200.

The CO₂ tank 202 is a tank that compresses and stores CO₂ collected bythe CO₂ collection unit 200. The CO₂ tank 202 includes a storage amountsensor that detects a storage amount.

The CO₂ collection control unit 201 controls the start or end ofcollection control in the CO₂ collection unit 200 based on the storageamount of the CO₂ tank 102 in the vehicle 1A and the like. The CO₂collection control unit 201 includes a computation processing unit and astorage unit that stores a program executed by the computationprocessing unit and various data and provides a work space forcomputation processing. The CO₂ collection control unit 201 executes theabove control by the computation processing unit executing the programstored in the storage unit.

The controller 21 includes a communication unit 210, a storage unit 211,and a control unit 212.

The communication unit 210 is a communication module, and transmits andreceives information to and from the vehicle 1A or the transportationvehicle 3 through near-field communication.

The storage unit 211 includes a main storage unit, and stores a programexecuted by the control unit 212 and various data, and provides a workspace for computation processing. Further, the storage unit 211 storesidentification information of the user of the CO₂ recovery device 10 andthe amount of CO₂ collected from the CO₂ recovery device 10 in adatabase B2110. The storage unit 211 may include a large-capacityauxiliary storage device.

The control unit 212 includes a computation processing unit, andexecutes the program stored in the storage unit 211, thus causing thecommunication unit 210 to transmit the information in the storage unit211 and linking the information received by the communication unit 210with a CO₂ collection start time for storage in the storage unit 211.The CO₂ collection start time and the information linked with the CO₂collection start time will be described in detail later.

Transportation Vehicle

The transportation vehicle 3 is a vehicle that transports CO₂ from theCO₂ collection stations 2A and 2B to the processing plant 4, and is, forexample, a tank truck. The transportation vehicle 3 includes the CO₂collection device 30 and a controller 31 that are communicably connectedto each other.

The CO₂ collection device 30 includes a CO₂ collection unit 300, a CO₂collection control unit 301, and a CO₂ tank 302.

The CO₂ collection unit 300 is connected to the CO₂ collection device 20in the CO₂ collection station 2 to collect CO₂ stored in the CO₂ tank202 of the CO₂ collection station 2A. The CO₂ collection unit 300 alsodischarges CO₂ in the CO₂ tank 302 of the transportation vehicle 3 intothe processing plant 4. Moreover, the CO₂ collection unit 300 includes aconnection sensor that detects which of the CO₂ collection station 2 andthe processing plant 4 is connected to the CO₂ collection unit 300.

The CO₂ tank 302 is a tank that compresses and stores CO₂ collected bythe CO₂ collection unit 300. The CO₂ tank 302 includes a storage amountsensor that detects a storage amount.

The CO₂ collection control unit 301 controls the start or end ofcollection control in the CO₂ collection unit 300 based on the storageamount of the CO₂ tank 202 in the CO₂ collection station 2A and thelike. The CO₂ collection control unit 301 includes a computationprocessing unit and a storage unit that stores a program executed by thecomputation processing unit and various data and provides a work spacefor computation processing. The CO₂ collection control unit 301 executesthe above control by the computation processing unit executing theprogram stored in the storage unit.

The controller 31 includes a communication unit 310, a storage unit 311,and a control unit 312.

The communication unit 310 is a communication module, and transmits andreceives information to and from the CO₂ collection station 2 or theprocessing plant 4 through near-field communication.

The storage unit 311 includes a main storage unit, and stores a programand various data, and provides a work space for computation processing.Further, the storage unit 311 stores the identification information ofthe user of the CO₂ recovery device 10, the amount of CO₂ collected fromthe user, and a collection start time in a database C3110. The storageunit 311 may include a large-capacity auxiliary storage device.

The control unit 312 executes the program stored in the storage unit311, thus causing the communication unit 310 to transmit the informationin the storage unit 311 or storing the information received by thecommunication unit 310 in the storage unit 311.

Processing Plant

The processing plant 4 includes a CO₂ processing device 40, a CO₂collection device 41, and a controller 42 that are communicablyconnected to each other.

The CO₂ processing device 40 is a processing device capable ofprocessing CO₂ or utilizing CO₂ as it is, and is a device having aplurality of intended uses such as uses of CO₂ for conversion into fueland photosynthesis of plants. In the present specification, it may bedescribed that CO₂ is processed, even when CO₂ is used as it is withoutbeing processed, such as use for photosynthesis of plants.

The CO₂ collection device 41 includes a CO₂ collection unit 410, a CO₂collection control unit 411, and a CO₂ tank 412.

The CO₂ collection unit 410 is connected to the CO₂ collection device 30of the transportation vehicle 3, thus collecting CO₂ stored in the CO₂tank 302 of the transportation vehicle 3.

The CO₂ tank 412 is a tank that compresses and stores CO₂ collected bythe CO₂ collection unit 410. The CO₂ tank 412 includes a storage amountsensor that detects a storage amount.

The CO₂ collection control unit 411 controls the start or end ofcollection control in the CO₂ collection unit 410 based on the storageamount of the CO₂ tank 302 of the transportation vehicle 3 and the like.

The controller 42 includes a communication unit 420, a storage unit 421,a processor 422, and a control unit 423.

The communication unit 420 is a communication module, and transmits andreceives information to and from the transportation vehicle 3 throughnear-field communication, or transmits and receives information to andfrom the information management center 5 via the communication network6.

The storage unit 421 includes a main storage unit, and stores a programand various data, and provides a work space for computation processing.The storage unit 421 includes a database D4210 and a database E4211. Thestorage unit 421 stores the identification information of the user ofthe CO₂ recovery device 10, the amount of CO₂ collected from the CO₂recovery device 10, and the information indicating a CO₂ collectionstart time in the database D4210. The storage unit 421 stores theidentification information of the user of the CO₂ recovery device 10 andthe information about the amount of CO₂ collected from the user, thesepieces of information being stored in the database D4210, andinformation indicating the amount of use and intended use of CO₂ in theCO₂ processing device 40 in the database E4211.

The processor 422 executes the program stored in the storage unit 421 tocalculate the amount of CO₂ used in the CO₂ processing device 40 andperform information processing for linking the information about theamount of use calculated and the intended use with the information inthe database D4210.

The control unit 423 executes the program stored in the storage unit421, thus causing the communication unit 420 to transmit the informationin the storage unit 421 or storing the information received by thecommunication unit 420 in the storage unit 421.

Information Management Center

The information management center 5 has a controller 50 that includes acommunication unit 500, a storage unit 501, a processor 502, and acontrol unit 503 that are communicable with each other.

The communication unit 500 is a communication module, and transmits andreceives information to and from the processing plant 4 and the vehicle1A via the communication network 6.

The storage unit 501 includes a main storage unit, and stores a programand various data, and provides a work space for computation processing.The storage unit 501 also includes a database F5010. The storage unit501 stores the intended use in the processing plant 4, the amount of useof CO₂, and the identification information of the user of the CO₂recovery device 10, these pieces of information being received from theprocessing plant 4, in the database F5010.

The processor 502 executes the program stored in the storage unit 501 toperform a process such as linking the information newly received fromthe processing plant 4 with the information in the database F5010 forupdating.

The control unit 503 executes the program stored in the storage unit501, thus causing the communication unit 500 to transmit the informationin the storage unit 501 to the vehicle 1A or the processing plant 4.

Control and Information Flow in Information Management System

Control and a flow of information in the information management system1000 will be described with reference to FIG. 1 . In each of thevehicles 1A, 1B, and 1C, the CO₂ recovery device 10 recovers CO₂. Forexample, when the CO₂ recovery device 10 has recovered a certain amountof CO₂, a user of the vehicles 1A, 1B, or 1C goes to the CO₂ collectionstation 2A or 2B. CO₂ recovered in the vehicles 1A, 1B, and 1C iscollected in the CO₂ collection stations 2A and 2B. Along with thiscollection, the identification information of the user of the CO₂recovery device 10 and the information about the amount of CO₂ collectedfrom the CO₂ recovery device 10 and a collection start time are linkedwith each other and stored in the storage unit 211 of the controller 21in the CO₂ collection stations 2A and 2B. The identification informationof the user of the CO₂ recovery device 10 is transmitted from thestorage unit 111 of the controller 11 by the communication unit 120 ofthe information communication terminal 12 and received by thecommunication unit 210.

The linked information stored in the storage unit 211 is transmitted tothe processing plant 4 via the transportation vehicle 3. In theprocessing plant 4, the amount of collection of CO₂ and the informationindicating the intended use in the processing plant 4 and the amount ofuse of CO₂ for the intended use are linked with each other and stored inthe storage unit 421 of the controller 42. The linked information storedin the storage unit 421 is transmitted to the information managementcenter 5. The information including the intended use information such asthe intended use and amount of use of CO₂ that are linked with eachother is transmitted from the information management center 5 to theinformation communication terminal 12 of each of the vehicles 1A, 1B,and 1C including the CO₂ recovery device 10. As the informationcommunication terminal 12 displays or speaks the information includingthe intended use information to notify each user of the CO₂ recoverydevice 10 of the information including the intended use information.

FIGS. 2A to 2D are explanatory diagrams of the database B of the CO₂collection station according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2Aillustrates an example of the state of the CO₂ tank 202 in the CO₂collection station 2A, and FIG. 2B illustrates the contents of thedatabase B2110 of the CO₂ collection station 2A corresponding to FIG.2A. FIG. 2C illustrates an example of the state of the CO₂ tank 202 inthe CO₂ collection station 2B, and FIG. 2D illustrates the contents of adatabase B2111 of the CO₂ collection station 2B corresponding to FIG.2C. It is assumed that the CO₂ collection station 2A has the CO₂ tank202 having a maximum capacity of (MAX), collects (20) of the amount ofCO₂ from the vehicle 1A used by a user A, and collects (10) of theamount of CO₂ from the vehicle 1B used by a user B. It is assumed thatthe CO₂ collection station 2B has the CO₂ tank 202 having a maximumcapacity of (MAX), and collects (15) of the amount of CO₂ from thevehicle 1C used by a user C. While the unit of the amount of collectionis, for example, mass, the unit is a dimensionless unit for the sake ofsimplicity. At this time, the identification information of the user ofthe CO₂ recovery device 10, the collection start time when the userstarts the collection in the CO₂ collection station 2, and the amount ofcollection of CO₂ are linked with each other, and stored in the databaseB2110 of the CO₂ collection station 2A and the database B2111 of the CO₂collection station 2B, respectively. The user identification informationis information for identifying the user on the information managementsystem 1000, and for example, a registration number corresponding to auser registered in the database of a dealer when the owner of thevehicle 1A has purchased the vehicle 1A including the CO₂ recoverydevice 10 is used. These pieces of information stored in the databaseB2111 are transmitted to the database C3110 included in the controller31 of the transportation vehicle 3, and further transmitted to thedatabase D4210 included in the controller 42 of the processing plant 4.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of information processing in theprocessing plant according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 illustratesthe storage state of the CO₂ tank 412 in the processing plant 4 and theinformation processing in the database D4210 in a corresponding manner.In the processing plant 4, CO₂ stored in the CO₂ tank 412 issequentially allocated to the identification information of a user whosecollection start time is earlier. For example, in the database D4210that stores the information in which the user identificationinformation, the CO₂ collection start time, the amount of collection ofCO₂, and the amount of use of CO₂ are linked with each other, the linkedinformation is sorted in ascending order of the collection start time.In practice, it is not possible to distinguish which CO₂ in the CO₂ tank412 is collected by which user, and thus this linking is for dataprocessing. In the example illustrated in FIG. 3 , the user A, the userC, and the user B are sorted in this order. Information processing isthen performed to link the amount of collection with the amount of use(for example, amount of use subjected to process of conversion intofuel) in the sorted order, that is, in ascending order of the collectionstart time. For example, assuming that the amount of CO₂ used forconversion into fuel is (30), information processing is performed firstto link the amount (20) of collection of CO₂ of the user A whosecollection start time is the earliest with the amount of use of CO₂. Theremaining amount of use that is not linked is (30−20=10), which isindicated by V′. For V′, information processing is performed to link theamount (15) of collection of CO₂ of the user C whose collection starttime is the second earliest after the user A with the amount of use ofCO₂. Since the remaining amount V′ of use of CO₂, that is, (10) is lessthan the amount of collection of CO₂ of the user C, that is, (15),information processing is performed to link the remaining amount V′ of(10) that may be linked out of the amount of collection of CO₂ with theamount of use of CO₂. The database D4210 is then updated with the amount(5) of collection of CO₂ that has not been linked as the amount ofcollection of CO₂ of the user C. The above processing is repeatedlyperformed every predetermined time interval. Similar informationprocessing is performed on the amount used for photosynthesis. Thislinking will be described later in more detail using flow charts.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of the database F of the informationmanagement center according to the first embodiment. The informationabout the amount of CO₂ collected at the CO₂ collection station 2A, theamount of CO₂ used in the processing plant 4, the date of use, and theintended use, and the information about the total amount of use of CO₂are stored in the database F5010 for each of the pieces of useridentification information.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of the information communicationterminal 12 according to the first embodiment. When a display command isinput from a user through the input unit 122 exemplified as buttonsdisplayed on a touch panel, the information about the amount ofcollection of CO₂, the amount of use of CO₂, and the intended use of CO₂is output to the output unit 121 as illustrated in FIG. 5 .

Control Flow

FIGS. 6A and 6B are control flowcharts performed by the vehicle and theCO₂ collection station according to the first embodiment. While thevehicle 1A and the CO₂ collection station 2A will be described, similarcontrol is executed in other vehicles 1B and 1C and the CO₂ collectionstation 2B.

FIG. 6A will be described first. At step S1, the CO₂ recovery controlunit 101 determines whether or not the CO₂ recovery unit 100 isconnected to the CO₂ collection unit 200 of the CO₂ collection station2A, based on connection information detected by the connection sensor ofthe CO₂ recovery unit 100. When the CO₂ recovery unit 100 is notconnected to the CO₂ collection unit 200 (step S1: No), the control flowends. When the CO₂ recovery unit 100 is connected to the CO₂ collectionunit 200 (step S1: Yes), the control unit 110 causes the communicationunit 120 to transmit identification information of the user of the CO₂recovery device 10 stored in the database A1110 of the storage unit 111to the CO₂ collection station 2A (step S2), and the process proceeds tostep S3.

At step S3, the control unit 110 starts counting a timer value from thetime of the transmission at step S2, and the process proceeds to stepS4.

At step S4, the control unit 110 determines whether or not a receptioncompletion notification and a CO₂ discharge control start request havebeen received from the CO₂ collection station 2A via the communicationunit 120. When the reception completion notification and the CO₂discharge control start request have not been received (step S4: No),the process proceeds to step S5.

At step S5, the control unit 110 determines whether or not the countedtimer value is more than or equal to a predetermined value. When thetimer value is less than the predetermined value (step S5: No), theprocess returns to step S4. If the timer value is more than or equal tothe predetermined value (step S5: Yes), the process returns to step S2.

At step S4, when the reception completion notification and the CO₂discharge control start request are received (step S4: Yes), the CO₂recovery control unit 101 causes the CO₂ recovery unit 100 to dischargeCO₂ from the CO₂ tank 102 into the CO₂ collection unit 200 of the CO₂collection station 2A (step S6), and the process proceeds to step S7.

At step S7, the CO₂ recovery control unit 101 determines whether or notdischarging from the CO₂ tank 102 has been completed, based on remainingamount information detected by the storage amount sensor of the CO₂ tank102. When discharging has not been completed (step S7: No), step S7 isrepeated until discharging is completed. When discharging has beencompleted (step S7: Yes), the CO₂ recovery control unit 101 causes thecommunication unit 120 to transmit a CO₂ discharge completionnotification to the CO₂ collection station 2A (step S8), and the processproceeds to step S9.

At step S9, the control unit 110 resets the counted timer value and endsthe control flow.

Next, FIG. 6B will be described. At step S101, the control unit 212determines whether or not user identification information has beenreceived from the vehicle 1A every time a predetermined time elapses.When the identification information has not been received (step S101;No), the control flow ends. When the identification information has beenreceived (step S101), the control unit 212 transmits a receptioncompletion notification and a CO₂ discharge control start request to thevehicle 1A (step S102), and the process proceeds to step S103.

At step S103, the control unit 212 starts counting a timer value fromthe time of the transmission at step S102, the CO₂ collection controlunit 201 starts CO₂ collection control, and the process proceeds to stepS104.

At step S104, the control unit 212 determines whether or not a CO₂discharge completion notification has been received from vehicle 1A.When the CO₂ discharge completion notification has not been received(step S104: No), it is determined whether or not the timer value is morethan or equal to a predetermined value (step S105).

When the timer value is less than the predetermined value at step S105(step S105: No), the process returns to step S104. When the timer valueis more than or equal to the predetermined value (step S105: Yes), thecontrol unit 212 notifies an error notification to a manager of the CO₂collection station 2A or the like via the communication unit 210 (stepS106), and the process proceeds to step S108.

At step S104, when the CO₂ discharge completion notification is received(step S104: Yes), the process proceeds to step S107.

At step S107, the CO₂ collection control unit 201 ends the CO₂collection control, and the control unit 212 performs informationprocessing to link the user identification information received from thevehicle 1A with the amount of collection of CO₂ and the collection starttime, stores the linked information in the database B2110 of the storageunit 211, and the process proceeds to step S108.

At step S108, the control unit 212 resets the counted timer value andends the control flow.

FIGS. 7A and 7B are control flowcharts performed by the CO₂ collectionstation and the transportation vehicle according to the firstembodiment, respectively. FIG. 7A is a control flowchart performed bythe CO₂ collection station, and FIG. 7B is a control flowchart performedby the transportation vehicle.

FIG. 7A will be described first. At step S201, the CO₂ collectioncontrol unit 201 determines whether or not the CO₂ collection unit 200is connected to the CO₂ collection unit 300 of the transportationvehicle 3, based on connection information detected by the connectionsensor of the CO₂ collection unit 200. When the CO₂ collection unit 200is not connected to the CO₂ collection unit 300 (step S201: No), thecontrol flow ends. When the CO₂ collection unit 200 is connected to theCO₂ collection unit 300 (step S201: Yes), the process proceeds to stepS202.

At step S202, the CO₂ collection control unit 201 starts control todischarge CO₂ into the CO₂ tank 202, and the process proceeds to stepS203.

At step S203, the CO₂ collection control unit 201 determines whether ornot discharging of CO₂ has been completed based on the remaining amountof the CO₂ tank. When discharging has not been completed (step S203:No), step S203 is repeated until discharging is completed. Whendischarging has been completed (step S203: Yes), the control unit 212causes the communication unit 210 to transmit a CO₂ discharge completionnotification and the information stored in the database B2110(information in which user identification information, amount ofcollection of CO₂, and collection start time are linked with each other)to the transportation vehicle 3 (step S204), and the control flow ends.

Next, FIG. 7B will be described. At step S301, the control unit 312determines whether or not the CO₂ discharge completion notification andthe information in the database B2110 have been received from the CO₂collection station 2A via the communication unit 310 every time apredetermined time elapses. When the completion notification and theinformation have not been received (step S301: No), the control flowends. When the completion notification and the information have beenreceived (step S301: Yes), the control unit 312 stores the receivedinformation in the database C3110 of the storage unit 311 (step S302),and the control flow ends.

FIGS. 8A and 8B are control flowcharts performed by the transportationvehicle and the processing plant according to the first embodiment,respectively. FIG. 8A is a control flowchart performed by thetransportation vehicle, and FIG. 8B is a control flowchart executed bythe processing plant. While FIG. 8B describes a case of use for aprocess of conversion into fuel, similar control is executed in a caseof use for photosynthesis.

FIG. 8A will be described first. At step S401, the CO₂ collectioncontrol unit 301 determines whether or not the CO₂ collection unit 300is connected to the CO₂ collection unit 410 of the processing plant 4,based on connection information detected by the connection sensor of theCO₂ collection unit 300. When the CO₂ collection unit 300 is notconnected to the CO₂ collection unit 410 (step S401: No), the controlflow ends. When the CO₂ collection unit 300 is connected to the CO₂collection unit 410 (step S401: Yes), the CO₂ collection unit 300 startsCO₂ discharge control (step S402), and the process proceeds to stepS403.

At step S403, the CO₂ collection control unit 301 determines whether ornot discharging of CO₂ has been completed, based on remaining amountinformation detected by the storage amount sensor of the CO₂ tank 302.When discharging has not been completed (step S403: No), step S403 isrepeated until discharging is completed. When discharging has beencompleted (step S403: Yes), the control unit 312 causes thecommunication unit 420 to transmit a discharge completion notificationand information in the database C3110 (information in which useridentification information, amount of collection of CO₂, and collectionstart time are linked with each other) to the processing plant 4 (stepS404), and the control flow ends.

Next, FIG. 8B will be described. At step S501, the control unit 423determines whether or not the CO₂ discharge completion notification andthe information in the database C3110 have been received from thetransportation vehicle 3 every time a predetermined time elapses. Whenthe discharge completion notification and the information have not beenreceived (step S501: No), the process proceeds to step S503. When thecompletion notification and the information have been received (stepS501: Yes), the processor 422 updates the information in the databaseD4210 using the information received (step S502), and the processproceeds to step S503.

At step S503, the control unit 423 determines whether or not CO₂ in theCO₂ tank 412 has been used for conversion into fuel in the CO₂processing device 40, based on a change in the amount of CO₂ in the CO₂tank 412, the change being detected by the storage amount sensor. WhenCO₂ has not been used for conversion into fuel (step S503: No), thecontrol flow ends. When CO₂ has been used for conversion into fuel (stepS503: Yes), the processor 422 calculates the amount of CO₂ used forconversion into fuel (amount of use of CO₂) V (step S504), and theprocess proceeds to step S505.

At step S505, the processor 422 performs information processing to linkthe user identification information and the information about the amountof collection of CO₂ among the information received from thetransportation vehicle 3 and stored in the database D4210 with theintended use of CO₂ (conversion into fuel) and the amount of CO₂ usedfor conversion into fuel and to store the linked information in thedatabase E4211, and the control flow ends.

FIG. 9 is a control flowchart of information processing performed by theprocessing plant 4 according to the first embodiment.

At step S601, the processor 422 sorts the information in the databaseD4210 in ascending order of the CO₂ collection start time, and theprocess proceeds to step S602.

At step S602, the processor 422 extracts identification information of auser whose CO₂ collection start time is the earliest and an amount S ofcollection of CO₂ of the user from the database D4210, and the processproceeds to step S603.

At step S603, the processor 422 determines whether or not a previousremaining processing amount V′old (amount of use not linked with amountof collection) is stored in the storage unit 421. When V′old is notstored (step S603: No), the process proceeds to step S605. When V′old isstored (step S603: Yes), the processor 422 performs a correction to addthe previous remaining processing amount V′old to the amount of CO₂ usedfor conversion into fuel, which has been calculated at step S504, anddeletes the information about the previous remaining processing amountV′old from the storage unit 421 (step S604), and the process proceeds tostep S605.

At step S605, the processor 422 determines whether or not a differenceV′ (=V−S) between the amount V of CO₂ used for conversion into fuel, theamount V beings calculated by the processor 422, or the amount V of useof CO₂ corrected at step S604 and the amount S of collection of CO₂ ofthe user, the amount S being extracted at step S602, is more than orequal to 0. When V′ is less than 0, that is, when the amount S ofcollection of CO₂ is more than the amount V of use of CO₂ (step S605:No), the process proceeds to step S609. When V′ is more than or equal to0, that is, when the amount S of collection of CO₂ is less than theamount V of use of CO₂ (step S605: Yes), the processor 422 performs aprocess corresponding to the determination that all the amount S ofcollection of CO₂ of the user is used. That is, the user identificationinformation, the amount S of collection of CO₂, and the amount V usedfor conversion into fuel are linked with each other and stored in thedatabase E4211 (step S606). Thereafter, the control process proceeds tostep S607.

At step S607, the information about the user stored in the databaseD4210, which has been linked, is deleted. Thereafter, the controlprocess proceeds to step S608.

At step S608, the processor 422 stores the difference V′ as V′old in thestorage unit 421, and the process returns to step S602.

At step S609, the processor 422 performs a process corresponding to thedetermination that, out of the amount S of collection of CO₂, the amountV of CO₂ to be converted into fuel has been converted into fuel. Thatis, the user identification information, the amount S of collection ofCO₂, and the amount V of CO₂ used for conversion into fuel are linkedwith each other and stored in the database E4211, and the processproceeds to step S610.

At step S610, the database D4210 is updated by changing the amount S ofcollection of CO₂ of the user stored in the database D4210 to theabsolute value of the difference V′ (amount of collection of CO₂ thathas not been used for conversion into fuel), the process proceeds tostep S611.

At step S611, the processor 422 stores the amount of difference V′old as0 in the storage unit 421, and the control flow ends.

As described above, the information processing is performed to link theamount of collection of CO₂ with the amount of use of CO₂ in an orderfrom the user whose CO₂ collection start time is the earliest in the CO₂collection device.

The control flowchart of FIG. 9 will be specifically described withreference to FIG. 3 .

The processor 422 sorts the information in the database D4210 inascending order of the CO₂ collection start time as in the table on theupper right side of FIG. 3 (step S601).

Next, the identification information of the user A whose CO₂ collectionstart time is the earliest and the amount (20) of collection of CO₂ areextracted (step S602).

Next, at step S603, the control unit 423 determines that the previousremaining processing amount V′old is not stored (it is assumed thatV′old is not stored).

Next, the processor 422 calculates the difference V′ (=30−20) betweenthe amount (30) of use of CO₂ and the amount (20) of collection of CO₂of the user A, determines that V′ is more than or equal to 0 (StepS605), links the identification information of the user A, the amount(20) of use of CO₂, the amount (20) of collection of CO₂, and intendeduse information indicating conversion into fuel with each other, andstores the linked information in the database E4211 (step S606).

Next, the processor 422 deletes the information about the user A fromthe database D4210 as illustrated in the table on the middle right sideof FIG. 3 (step S607).

Next, the processor 422 stores the difference V′ (10) calculated at stepS605 as V′old in the storage unit 421 (step S608).

Next, the control process returns to step S602, and the processor 422extracts the identification information of the user C whose collectionstart time is the second earliest after the user A and the amount (15)of collection of CO₂.

Next, since the previous remaining processing amount V′old is determinedas (10) at step S603 and stored at step S608, the processor 422 performsa correction to add the previous remaining processing amount V′old tothe amount V of use of CO₂ (Step S604). Here, it is assumed that theamount of use of CO₂ for new conversion into fuel is 0, and thus thecorrected amount V of use of CO₂ is the previous remaining processingamount V′old (10).

Next, the processor 422 calculates the difference V′ (=10−15=−5) betweenthe corrected amount (10) of use of CO₂ and the amount (15) ofcollection of CO₂ of the user C, determines that V′ is less than 0 (StepS605), links the identification information of the user C, the amount(10) of use of CO₂, the amount (15) of collection of CO₂, and theintended use information indicating conversion into fuel with eachother, and stores the linked information in the database E4211 (stepS609).

Next, the processor 422 updates the information stored in the databaseD4210 by storing the absolute value (5) of the difference V′ calculatedat step S605 described above (out of amount of collection of CO₂ of userC, amount not used for conversion into fuel) as the amount of CO₂ of theuser C (step S610).

Next, the processor 422 stores the remaining processing amount V′old as0 in the storage unit 421 (step S611), and the control flow ends.

As described above, the extraction process and the linking process arerepeatedly performed in ascending order of the CO₂ collection starttime.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are control flowcharts performed by the processingplant and the information management center according to the firstembodiment, respectively. FIG. 10A is a control flowchart performed bythe processing plant 4, and FIG. 10B is a control flowchart performed bythe information management center.

FIG. 10A will be described first. At step S701, the control unit 423determines whether or not there is information stored in the databaseE4211. When there is no information (step S701: No), the control flowends. When there is information (step S701: Yes), the process proceedsto step S702.

At step S702, the control unit 423 causes the communication unit 420 totransmit the information in the database E4211 to the informationmanagement center 5, and the process proceeds to step S703.

At step S703, the control unit 423 starts counting a timer value fromthe time of the transmission at step S702, and the process proceeds tostep S704.

At step S704, the control unit 423 determines whether or not a receptioncompletion notification has been received from the informationmanagement center 5. When the notification has not been received (stepS704: No), the process proceeds to step S707. When the notification hasbeen received (step S704: Yes), the control unit 423 causes theprocessor 422 to delete the transmitted information from the databaseE4211 (step S705), and the process proceeds to step S706.

At step S706, the control unit 423 resets the timer value, and thecontrol flow ends.

At step S707, the control unit 423 determines whether or not the countedtimer value is more than a predetermined value. When the timer value isless than or equal to the predetermined value (step S707: No), theprocess proceeds to step S704. When the timer value is more than thepredetermined value (step S707: Yes), the process returns to step S702.

Next, FIG. 10B will be described. At step S801, the control unit 503determines whether the information in the database E4211 has beenreceived from the processing plant 4. When the information has not beenreceived (step S801: No), the control flow ends. When the informationhas been received (step S801: Yes), the process proceeds to step S802.

At step S802, the processor 502 determines whether or not the receivedinformation is already stored and the received information is about auser already registered in the database F5010. When the receivedinformation is already registered, based on the received information,the information about the intended use of CO₂ (conversion into fuel) andthe information about the amount of use of CO₂, these pieces ofinformation being collected from the user, are updated (step S803), andthe process proceeds to step S805. When the received information is notstored, the received information is newly added to the database F5010(step S804), and the process proceeds to step S805.

At step S805, the processor 502 determines whether the process ofupdating or adding all the received information has been completed. Whenthe process has not been completed (step S805: No), the process returnsto step S802. When the process has been completed (step S805: Yes), theprocess proceeds to step S806.

At step S806, the control unit 503 causes the communication unit 500 totransmit a reception completion notification to the processing plant 4,and the control flow ends.

FIGS. 11A and 11B are control flowcharts performed by the vehicle andthe information management center according to the first embodiment,respectively. FIG. 11A is a control flowchart performed by the vehicle1A, and FIG. 11B is a control flowchart performed by the informationmanagement center 5. The control flowchart performed by the vehicle 1Aillustrated in FIG. 11A will be described first. Similar control isexecuted in other vehicles 1B and 1C.

At step S901, the control unit 110 causes the communication unit 120 totransmit a request to update information about the amount of use andintended use of CO₂ to the information management center 5 every time apredetermined time elapses, and the process proceeds to step S902.

At step S902, the control unit 110 starts counting a timer value fromthe time of the transmission at step S901, and the process proceeds tostep S903.

At step S903, the control unit 110 determines whether or not updateinformation has been received via the communication unit 120. When theupdate information has not been received (step S903: No), the controlunit 110 determines whether or not the timer value is more than apredetermined value (step S905). When the timer value is less than orequal to the predetermined value (step S905: No), the process returns tostep S903, and when the timer value is more than the predetermined value(step S905: Yes), the process returns to step S901.

When the update information is received at step S903 (step S903: Yes),the control unit 110 updates the information in the database A1110 basedon the received information (step S904), and then the control unit 110resets the timer value (step S906), and the process proceeds to stepS907.

At step S907, control unit 110 causes the information communicationterminal 12 to display the resultant information on a screen based on auser's request, and ends the control flow. A specific control flow ofdisplaying the information on the screen will be described withreference to FIG. 12 .

Next, a control flowchart performed by the information management center5 illustrated in FIG. 11B will be described.

At step S911, the control unit 503 determines whether or not the updaterequest has been received from the vehicle 1A via the communication unit500. When the update request has not been received (step S911: No), thecontrol flow ends. When the update request has been received (step S911:Yes), the control unit 503 causes the communication unit 500 to transmitthe information in the database F5010 to the vehicle 1A (step S912), andthe control flow ends.

FIG. 12 is a control flowchart performed by the informationcommunication terminal according to the first embodiment.

At step S908, the terminal control unit 123 determines whether or not arequest to display information about the amount of use and intended useof CO₂ has been input from a user of the CO₂ recovery device 10 throughthe input unit 122. When the display request has not been input (stepS908: No), the control flow ends. When the display request has beeninput (step S908: Yes), the terminal control unit 123 causes the outputunit 121 to display the information about the amount of use and intendeduse of CO₂, the information being stored in the storage unit 111, (stepS909), and the control flow ends.

In this way, with respect to CO₂ that is recovered by the CO₂ recoverydevice 10 of the vehicles 1A, 1B, and 1C and collected at the CO₂collection stations 2A and 2B, the identification information of theuser of the CO₂ recovery device 10, the amount of recovery of CO₂, andthe information about the intended use and amount of use of CO₂ may bemanaged between the vehicles 1A, 1B, and 1C, the CO₂ collection stations2A and 2B, the transportation vehicle 3, the processing plant 4, and theinformation management center 5. Furthermore, since the user of the CO₂recovery device 10 may check the information indicating the intended useof CO₂ collected, the user is aware of CO₂ recovery and socialcontribution, which raises user's motivation, and as a result of that,the CO₂ recovery may be promoted. In addition, as information processingis performed to link the amount of collection of CO₂ with the amount ofuse of CO₂ in an order from the user whose CO₂ collection start time inthe CO₂ collection device 20 is the earliest, the earlier CO₂ iscollected, the earlier CO₂ is used, and the user is aware of earlyrecovery of CO₂ to be highly motivated. Further, since information maybe updated or added to the database or the like, the user may recognizethe latest information about the intended use and amount of use of CO₂.Moreover, a new user may be easily added to the information managementsystem 1000, and may recognize the intended use information. Inaddition, new intended use may be easily added to the informationmanagement system 1000.

While the vehicles 1A, 1B, and 1C include the CO₂ recovery device 10 inthe first embodiment described above, the CO₂ recovery device 10 may beprovided in other structures that emit CO₂. For example, the CO₂recovery device 10 may be provided in a house such as a detached houseor a condominium, a public facility, or a building such as a factory.

While the user is, for example, the owner of the vehicle 1A includingthe CO₂ recovery device 10 in the first embodiment described above, in acase where the vehicle 1A is a vehicle used for services such as carrental and car sharing, the user may be a user of the service or aservice provider. When the user is a service user, the intended useinformation may be shared when a plurality of different vehicles isused. When the user is a service provider, the intended use informationmay be shared with vehicles. When the CO₂ recovery device 10 is providedin a rental building, the user may be the owner or the borrower.

While the processing plant 4 has a plurality of intended uses such asthe use of CO₂ for conversion into fuel and the use of CO₂ forphotosynthesis of plants in the first embodiment described above, eachprocessing plant has a single intended use like a plant dedicated forconversion into fuel. When CO₂ collected from the CO₂ recovery device 10of a certain user is used in a different processing plant (CO₂ usingfacility), user identification information and intended use informationare transmitted from each processing plant to the information managementcenter 5, and managed collectively. In addition, the intended use of CO₂in the CO₂ using facility is not limited to conversion into fuel andphotosynthesis, and for example, the use of CO₂ for generating carbondioxide gas may be included.

Further, while CO₂ is transported from the CO₂ collection stations 2Aand 2B to the processing plant 4 by the transportation vehicle 3 in thefirst embodiment described above, CO₂ may be transported by othertransportation such as a ship or a railroad, or may be transported by apipeline or the like. When the pipeline is used, for example,information is directly transmitted from the CO₂ collection stations 2Aand 2B to the processing plant 4 via the communication network 6.

Moreover, whether or not CO₂ has been actually used for conversion intofuel is determined and then the amount V of CO₂ converted into fuel iscalculated, and the information processing is performed to link theamount of collection of CO₂ with the amount of use of CO₂ in the firstembodiment described above, but a virtual amount V of CO₂ used forconversion into fuel may be set before CO₂ is used, and then theinformation processing of linking may be performed.

Further, in the first embodiment described above, while the linkedinformation is sorted in ascending order of the collection start time inthe database D4210, the sorting does not need to be performed, and theinformation with the earliest collection start time among the linkedinformation may be extracted.

Furthermore, while the information communication terminal 12 displaysintended use information in a table format in the first embodimentdescribed above, the intended use information may be displayed in agraph format such as a pie graph or a bar graph. In addition, theprocessing plant 4 may transmit its own positional information to theinformation management center 5, and the information communicationterminal 12 may display in which area CO₂ is used. The information to bedisplayed and the display format may be switched by an operation of theinput unit 122.

According to the present disclosure, it is possible to inform a user whouses a CO₂ recovery device of information such as the intended use andamount of use of CO₂ recovered from the CO₂ recovery device.

Although the disclosure has been described with respect to specificembodiments for a complete and clear disclosure, the appended claims arenot to be thus limited but are to be construed as embodying allmodifications and alternative constructions that may occur to oneskilled in the art that fairly fall within the basic teaching herein setforth.

What is claimed is:
 1. An information management device comprising: areceiver configured to receive intended use information indicating atleast one of: intended use of CO2 in a processing device configured toprocess CO2 recovered by a CO2 recovery device configured to recoverCO2; and an amount of use for the intended use; and positionalinformation of the processing device; and a controller configured tocontrol the information management device, wherein when the receiverreceives the intended use information, the controller is configured tocontrol the information management device to transmit informationincluding the intended use information to an information communicationterminal used by a user who has used the CO2 recovery device, or controlthe information communication terminal to output the informationincluding the intended use information, and when the receiver does notreceive the intended use information, the controller is configured tocontrol the information management device not to transmit theinformation including the intended use information, or control theinformation communication terminal not to output the informationincluding the intended use information.
 2. The information managementdevice according to claim 1, wherein the information including theintended use information further includes identification information ofthe user.
 3. The information management device according to claim 2,wherein the controller is configured to perform a process to link theintended use information with the identification information of theuser.
 4. The information management device according to claim 1, whereinthe intended use information includes information in which an amount ofcollection of CO2 is linked with an amount of use of in an ascendingorder of a CO2 collection start time when CO2 starts to be collectedfrom the CO2 recovery device.
 5. An information communication terminalcomprising: a receiver configured to receive information includingintended use information indicating at least one of: intended use of CO2in a processing device configured to process CO2 recovered by a CO2recovery device configured to recover CO2; and an amount of use for theintended use; and positional information of the processing device; andan output unit configured to output the intended use information.
 6. Theinformation communication terminal according to claim 5, wherein theinformation including the intended use information further includesidentification information of a user who has used the CO2 recoverydevice.
 7. The information communication terminal according to claim 6,wherein the output unit is configured to output the intended useinformation and the identification information.
 8. The informationcommunication terminal according to claim 5, wherein the intended useinformation includes information in which an amount of collection of CO2is linked with an amount of use of in an ascending order of a CO2collection start time when CO2 starts to be collected from the CO2recovery device.